AR-3a "Flat" eq position

Hi-

Loving my 3a's tremendously, started to ask myself what would be the factory "Flat" position in regards to the two, Hi and Mid, pots on the back.

Just curious to hear what the designer had in mind as far as his idea of a flat response.
Would it be the middle position? In that case they sound quite muffled, since they are very mellow and "introvert" speakers as is, at least in comparison to my 20k ATC Studio monitors, which are the complete opposite- in your face, super detailed.

Thanks
Rea

 

No, run them full range for best results, those pots are wirewound, and often in horrible condition too. Very prone to corrosion and intermittent issues. Test for you. Take a recording of the human voice, especially one you know well. Listen to this recording on your AR and your ATC Studio Monitors, report back which one gives you the least coloration.

 

Set them in the position that yields the best sonic results with a recording you're familiar with. The when you stumble upon the not-so-odd overbright recording, resort to that selector to tame the harshness, or enhance a muffled record. Let YOUR ears decide.

 

I used to play an orchestral recording, turn the pots up all the way, then back off until the strings just didn't sound edgy. That was in 1967.

 

Many speakers have a tweeter that is more sensitive than the woofer, and the tweeter's crossover circuit has a resistor to pad the volume down. If there's a resistor required anyway, why not make it a variable resistor to offer the user more control? The "flat" position would be the design resistance.

 

Have your 3a's undergone any restoration? If not, as indicated the pots might not be operating correctly which may be affecting driver output. If the capacitors in the crossover haven't been updated, that too could affect the output. I found that after updating my 3a's, I preferred the high pots about 3/4, and the mids just past half.

Of course all of this also depends on your own listening preferences, your amplification, music, etc.

 

Thanks! I replaced the pots myself to new ones that are designed specifically for these speakers, so the pots work fine. I did not, however, recap or upgraded the crossover network.

 

You might consider that. Lots of info here Restoring the AR-3a | The Classic Speaker Pages

 

I only have experience with the 4x I bought off craigslist many years ago, they sounded great until I played with the pots on the back then poof! No sound from one of the tweeters...old nasty wiring let go, fixing this is a real pig, you Have to get that box sealed right to get that AR 'sound'. You don't seem to have that issue with yours, I'd leave them wide open and be thankful all drivers are working...I wish I'd left mine alone. Keep enjoying them .

 

Just replace the pots.. It took me about an hour start to finish on both speakers.